Orlando, Fla. - St. Thomas Aquinas Women's Tennis suffered a rare second straight defeat on Thursday morning, as Lubbock Christian University took a 4-3 decision from the Spartans.
STAC slips to 10-3 on the year, while Lubbock Christian improves to 15-1 on the season.
STAC opened the day, taking two out of three matches to earn the doubles point, as Elita Silins & Jemima Parkinson defeated Michelle Trochez & Andrea De Bernardo, 6-3, followed by Amanda Kadiri & Samanta Villegas Robles' beating Taylor Nichols & Hannah Quick, 6-1. The team of Oshini Herath & Anastasiia Opolska won over Viktoriia Pavlovets & Kateryna Kryuchkova, 6-3 to stop the clean sweep.
Once the squads turned to singles competition, Lubbock Christian took 4-of-6 matches to take the team victory. The Spartans received wins from #2 Amanda Kadiri over Axelle Jacquemin 6-4, 6-4 and #3 Elise Semmartin against Michelle Trochez, 6-2, 6-3 to stave off a shutout by the Lady Chaps.
LUBBOCK CHRISTIAN 4/STAC 3 - OFFICIAL RESULTS
DOUBLES
Order of Finish: None Given
SINGLES
4. Anastasiia Opolska (LCU) def.
Elita Silins (STAC) 6-3, 6-2
LCU Record: 15-1, 0-0 LSC
STAC Record: 10-3, 4-1 ECC
THE ROCKHILL REPORT
"We feel like we let two great opportunities slip away today against two highly ranked teams (Women #11 and Men #17) in the country", said Head Coach Dan Rockhill. "Lubbock gave us an experience that we needed. They created a raucous environment that we rarely see in our region. Tennis has traditionally been a game of decorum and sportsmanship so today was a valuable experience that we handled well and that will serve us greatly in the future."
"We had plenty of opportunities in both matches but did not have the discipline necessary to execute in the important points", remarked Rockhill. "Often these types of matches are decided by just a few crucial points but you never know when they will occur. This is why the team needs to play every point like it is the match's most important."
"Elise and Amanda continued to play at a high level which is great news for our team going forward. Our depth has been our strength so if we can get the balance of our lineup playing well, good things will happen."
"Our men competed very well and we had enough to win today", stated Rockhill. "We won five first sets in the singles and had leads in all three doubles matches. One must give credit to Lubbock. They battled all afternoon and took the big points in the deciding moments. Lenny was excellent today and is having a great spring trip."
"We have another great opportunity tomorrow and we will continue to learn and improve. I look forward to learning how the team responds."
UP NEXT
STAC closes its Florida trip on Friday (March 15), taking on the University of Texas at Tyler in Orlando.
